off balance

1. Surprised, unprepared, as in The teacher gives unannounced tests to keep the class off balance . [Second half of 1900s]

2. Out of equilibrium, unsteady, as in When learning how to ride a two-wheeler, it's easy to get off balance and fall , or She stood up and threw the canoe off balance . [Mid-1900s]

Example Sentences

The use of off-balance-sheet debt is often a way to try to avoid getting as much investor scrutiny.

From The Daily Beast

Life is so much more interesting when you can keep other people just a little off-balance.

From The Daily Beast

It also has looked off-balance and seems to yearn for the era of the dictators that provided predictability.

From The Daily Beast

Libra The current cosmic climate brings temptation, potentially setting you off-balance.

From The Daily Beast

Indeed, Congress confronted this same problem in 1933, when it investigated the off-balance sheet transactions of that era.

From The Daily Beast

As Sheffield raised his right arm for the tap, his elbow jabbed against the breast of his opponent, topping the boy off-balance.

From Project Gutenberg

An unusually heavy roll caught him slightly off-balance and jostled him against the detective.

From Project Gutenberg

As the raft became even more off-balance, it tilted to a sharper angle, sliding all the Cubs except one into the river.

From Project Gutenberg

Even when she was off-balance, her feet tapped out the elementary routine.

From Project Gutenberg

The second beam took Rynason in the left wrist and spun him off-balance for a moment.

From Project Gutenberg